Flu Outbreak at Samo

This winter, flu cases have been on the rise, with case numbers reaching heights last seen in 2009 during the swine flu pandemic. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC] has reported emergency room visits for influenza as “very high” nationwide, with hospitalizations related to the flu increasing by 90 percent as of this week. The CDC estimates that the flu has been responsible for 24 million illnesses, 310,100 hospitalizations, and 13,000 deaths this season. These numbers have surpassed COVID-19, with 2 percent of deaths the week of Feb. 2 attributed to influenza and 1.5 percent attributed to the coronavirus. Hospitals across the country are overwhelmed with patients, and dozens of schools have temporarily closed their doors. The medical community has some theories behind the stark increase in numbers and severity of influenza A this year, although nothing has been confirmed. Because the flu season began later than usual this year, scientists speculate that the return to school after the holidays may have sparked a spike in cases. Katie Gershuni, Samo’s Health Office Specialist, has seen a giant increase in students presenting with flu-like symptoms over the past several weeks. Her hope is for students to have the best possible resources to combat the virus. “If your friends are sick around you, wear a mask. That’s the best way to prevent passing the flu to each other. Taking zinc and vitamin D daily are great preventative measures,” Gershuni said. Gershuni also touched on the norovirus, a stomach bug often confused for the flu, which has seen a rise in cases throughout LA County since the holiday season.“Norovirus does not go away with hand sanitizer. You have to physically wash your hands, so make sure you're washing your hands frequently,” Gershuni said.Boston Negrete (’27), a student at Samo weighed in on his recent struggle with contracting the flu. “It started with a sudden fever, so I took Tylenol and thought I was fine,” Negrete said. “The next day, I was throwing up, I couldn’t sleep with my 105-degree fever and wasn’t able to attend school for a week.”According to the Samo administration, these outbreaks have led to a significant rise in student absences across SMMUSD. Students are leaving school early, or not showing up due to their symptoms. Students are encouraged to monitor their symptoms and stay home to help monitor the spread of the flu and norovirus.Flu symptoms include fever or chills, headaches, body aches, fatigue, a sore throat and a runny nose. While similar to the common cold, influenza symptoms manifest themselves much more severely. Staying safe and sanitary throughout the flu season is important to avoid catching the unpleasant illness. Some ways to prevent catching the flu are to wash hands often, to limit physical contact and to distance yourself from people who have it. The biggest preventative measure to not catching influenza is getting the vaccine for it once a year.